Happy HolidaysMerry Christmas!

Friday, 21 December 2007

Being rather irreligious makes this time of year difficult. Not because I’m against Christmas. I’m not. Not in the slightest. I love it. But then I don’t want the joy I take from it or my general participation in the rituals to implicitly lend my support to Christianity. At the same time I cannot bring myself to stoop to anything like, “Happy Holidays,” to keep it at arm’s length. That’s just weak.

So, how to strike a balance between endorsing the holiday but not the religious aspects. I think I finally found a delicately nuanced middle ground.

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Sedition·com is green

A Fox one day spied a beautiful bunch of ripe grapes hanging from
a vine trained along the branches of a tree. The grapes seemed
ready to burst with juice, and the Fox’s mouth watered as he
gazed longingly at them.

The bunch hung from a high branch, and the Fox had to jump for
it. The first time he jumped he missed it by a long way. So he
walked off a short distance and took a running leap at it, only
to fall short once more. Again and again he tried, but in vain.

Now he sat down and looked at the grapes in disgust.

“What a fool I am,” he said. “Here I am wearing myself out to get
a bunch of sour grapes that are not worth gaping for.”

And off he walked very, very scornfully.

There are many who pretend to despise and belittle that which is
beyond their reach.